Hardiharr

@thechronodarkness: That's because it was supposed to be the dark middle chapter. And you had achieved an impossible mission that significantly set-back the arrival of the Reapers! If it wasn't for your courageous, balls-out charge into certain death, the universe would've been even LESS prepared than it was in ME3.

@LegendaryChopChop: Why not?

Reading a lot of people who say "I haven't played it, but it can't be that bad." Go play 1. Then import to 2, and play 2. Then import to 3, and play 3. Somehow, somewhere in the region of 100+ hours are literally taken apart in 10 minutes.

Mass Effect should be the flagship series for epic story-telling. Look at the reaction its garnered when it doesn't deliver on the promise and past amazing-ness. If BioWare can clarify the ending, provide some more closure, y'know, NOT have a half-assed ending that at best relies on obsessed fans interpreting the ending with almost pathologically deranged scrutiny, or at worst, is a miserable cop-out, then I don't see why they shouldn't.

Much like people say the vast majority of the pro-retcon people are just kind of dicks (and a lot of them are, the number of slashfic-quality endings I've seen proposed make me want to vomit), I'd say that the majority of the "You're entitled" people don't actually give a shit about ME anyway and have no stake in the matter.

@NoelVeiga: Good Lord, how is this not the last word in this sordid, depressing "debate"? It was a great article. Aris may be a saint otherwise, but his opinions evidenced during the commentary are pretty thoroughly reprehensible, and it's hard to judge him by anything other than his words and actions in a given circumstance.

@sopachuco13: That fact that his story is so goddamn ridiculous is the reason I think he can't be CIA. Say what you will about the American intelligence services, they've got access to some pretty talented individuals. You think they'd send an ex-Marine American citizen who develops "War on Terror" video games to spy with "I'm going to see my grandmother" as his excuse? They have actual spies they could send instead.

Lot of stupid things being said in the comments here. I'm not a fan of the United States' foreign policy (it tends to be as tactful and considered as a ten ton phallus dropped from orbit) but I find it annoying when people take their antipathy towards the US and turn it into support for a dictatorial, provocative, ass-backwards regime like Iran. They're not the plucky underdog fighting the evil corporate oppressor. They're hoodlums taking a page out of Kim-Jong Il's book when it comes to brinksmanship and general dickishness.

I hope this guy gets out all right, just as I hope all the people that don't get into the headlines do.

@Tan: Oh, so Warhammer 40k?

Shoot the man who wrote this dialogue. And then again, to make sure.

Did anyone else think that body spinning looked more like a glitch than an execution?

Well, this is unbelievably awesome.